Sgt. (Ret.) Mario Lopez and his family received a check for their new home in Vintage Oaks at an event Feb. 14. at the Smoothie King at 1659 SH 46W, New Braunfels.

The house is being provided by Homes for Our Troops in partnership with Smoothie King.

"Thanks to Homes for Our Troops, we’ll be debt free and have a specially adapted ADA home in New Braunfels where we can raise our family," Lopez said at the event.

Lopez was gravely injured by a large I.E.D. in 2008 while serving in Iraq, he said. His family's new home will better serve his accessibility needs, increasing both his safety and comfort.

“We are coming to the end of a four-year journey, and our home is almost completed," Lopez said. "It feels like a dream."